Goan Fish Curry

Right now I should be waxing lyrical about the beauty and splendor of the garden, the abundance of japanese dwarf peas and little gem lettuces and ruby chard; the tomatoes laden with fruit and even the first sight of a dwarf  melon. However the monsoon is in full sway here and lighting peppers the horizon. The rain is unrelenting and steady and we are enveloped in cool dark clouds, reminiscent of the pacific northwest or maybe even India...
I was conceived in the monsoon, so the rain is in my heart.
Today I am back in India,at least in my kitchen.....
After some sweet spiced chai, and fried plantains to start, I progressed onto a Goan fish curry.
I would have posted a picture of the golden sauce surrounding an island of Basmati rice, but there wasn't really an hiatus between pan, plate and belly, so you'll just have to take my word for the fact that this is sublime..

So here goes.

You will need spices
1 heaped teaspoon coriander powder
1 heaped teaspoon cumin powder
1 flat teaspoon tumeric
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper.
1 thumb of ginger (peeled)
3 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of tamarind (paste or concentrate)
3 thai green chillies
3 guajillo (or other red chilly like a birds eye)
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (methi)
7-8 peppercorns

3- 4 fillets of a white fish halibut or even humble tilapia serves well.
1 cup of white basmati rice.
1 can of organic coconut milk ( never buy the lite version, it is awful)
1/2 cup of dessicated coconut
Salt

For the curry put all the spices the coconut milk and coconut into a blender
and liquidize.

Get a large frying pan pour in the sauce and heat .
Add half a cup of water and bring to the boil
add the fish and let the fish cook in the bubbling sauce
Add salt to taste.

At Altitude Basmati Rice should be cooked with a 2:1 water to rice ratio.
(At sea level its 1.5:1)
Wash the rice first till it runs clear, add water, bring to boil, as soon as it boils
bring it to a low heat and let it simmer still covered.
When all the water has been absorbed your rice should be done. ( If it isn't just add a tiny bit of water)
and wait a few minutes more.

Serve rice in a little island surrounded by curry and fish garnished with fresh cilantro.
Have a monsoon Raga playing and imagine the coconut trees, paddy fields and the glorious rain...

Namaste.

T's Hummus

If there is one thing that links the entirety of the middle east, its some version of Hummus.
That is to say garlic, lemons, chickpeas (garbanzo beans) Tahini and olive oil.
The stories of hummus recipes and people driving miles to eat Hummus from their favorite restaurant, secret recipes, recipes handed down from the cooks of viziers, the urban legends and culture of hummus are legion.

The last place I bought hummus which was truly time-stopping was a small Lebanese cafe in Westwood called Sunin. It's nearly worth the trip to LA. (nearly mind, it'll take more than that to make me cross Arizona these days...) however combined with their magnificent Bastilla, (my version coming soon..., )i might be induced to make the journey.

Usually I make it in a completely improvised, ad hoc way such that i never remember a recipe.
T came up with a damn fine method which was recorded for posterity the other day, it has some really nice touches. SO here goes.

1 cup raw chickpeas soaked for a few hours or overnight.
1 juicy ripe lemon
1 juicy ripe lime
3 full tablespoons of Tahini
2 Cloves of garlic
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil.
1/4 cup live plain yogurt
salt to taste

Drain the chickpeas and cook with 1 clove of garlic until tender but not mushy.(Dont throw away the water)
Drop the Tahini lime and lemon juice in food processor
Add a tiny bit of chickpea water if its too sticky.
Add chickpeas, cooked clove of garlic and raw garlic
Blend and add yoghurt
Dribble in 1/8 th of a cup of olive oil
Add remaining chickpea water till you get the consistency you want.

For the garnish

2 tablespoons very finely chopped sweet red and yellow peppers
juice of 1 lime
1 finely chopped thai chilly
handful of finely chopped parsley
mix together and bash up a little in pestle and mortar

Put the hummus in a wide bowl, place the garnish at the center
sprinkle with smoked paprika
cover with remaining olive oil.

It helps to have a loaf of warm fresh bread or pita bread to eat yourself into a glycemic coma.

Sahtayn ! טוב לאכול

Mole, Ratty and Badger ?

No, not the small furry, near-blind, subterranean rodent. The exquisite, dark, rich brown Mexican sauce.
Mexico isn't my milieu, even though I live in New Mexico, Mexican food lies just outside my cultural references. I get it, I just never really made any. My spices always travel in the direction of India.
Mole' has always been something of an enigma until it was recently deconstructed for me. Once I understood
the basics ( thanks B and J), well, its a cooks privilege to improvise...

So here goes. What you will need is:

Handful of dried chillies
2 pasilla
3 Ancho
1 cascabel

1 very ripe plantain or banana
About a cupful of nuts and seed ( I used pumpkin, almond and cashew)
About a cup  of dried fruit ( I used figs, dates and a few raisins)
2 cups of chicken stock/ vegetable stock

1 Medium red onion chopped  fine.

2 cloves of garlic chopped fine.

2 Heaped spoonfuls of cacao powder or chocolate
1 tsp of powdered cinnamon
1 tsp of allspice
salt to taste

Take all your nuts and seeds and put them in a food processor till coarsely ground. and set aside.

Drop a little oil in a frying pan, heat and add the crushed and broken
chillies. toast for 5- 10 mins- don't burn them though
Remove the chillies and set aside

Add some more oil and then add the onions in one side of the pan
and the sliced plantain or banana on the other ,cook the onions and the plantain till really soft
then add the garlic and the chopped dried fruit.
Fry some more and then put the chillies back in the pan.
Put in the spices and the chocolate.
Add chicken stock or whatever stock you have to get enough liquid so the sauce will simmer for a few mins.
Finally add the nuts, mix it all together and put the entire contents of the pan into the food processor .
After blending pour the mole back into the pan, add stock and salt as needed to get the consistency and flavor you want.

You can do anything with this sauce, grilled chicken, shellfish, vegetables.
I made a large pasta salad with grilled scallops and shrimp and dressed it with the mole rather than go in the direction of rice beans or enchiladas.
Pretty fusion/weird but it was Excellent.
(If you happen to be a sorry vegan then pour it over your granola.)

xxxxx until we eat again

Salad to De-liver

 

The very word often brings up horrific memories of being forced to eat leathery fetid offal. I empathize.

At school liver was a rock hard piece of overcooked, unseasoned pigs liver which flew off my plate as I attempted to slice or pierce it. This type of story is not uncommon. I aim to try and change your mind.

The Liver of a well raised organic or wild  animal is incredibly nutrient dense, tastes mild and beautiful and has a smooth and silky texture (if you cook it right). There was a time when a hunter would literally eat the liver straight from the body of his kill. It can grant you stamina and energy like few other foods not to mention the massive source of Iron.

For the liver, first mince together

2 large cloves of garlic

3 anchovy fillets

1 teaspoon of capers

Add to this paste 1 egg.

Drip in 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil until emulsified.

Add a splash of Worcester sauce and Tabasco sauce.

This is your marinade.

1 lb liver

The liver I use is organic Buffalo liver. I recommend this, other wise organic chicken liver will do.

For the Buffalo liver slice into thin strips, scrupulously cut away any gristle and fascia. Cut into small cubes.

Soak in milk.for a couple of hours, pour off milk and then add the small liver cubes into the marinade.

For the salad. I recommend a bulky varied salad. Im just going to list some ingredients which I used for this one, but feel free to add to or remove as you wish.

Sunflower sprouts

Watercress

Romaine lettuce

Spinach

Parsley

Cucumber

Sweet red pepper

Scallions

Sweet pickles

Artichoke hearts

Tomato

Steamed or blanched Asparagus, baby Squash, and Peas

You get the idea.

Dress lightly with lemon, oil and splash of agave

Heat some oil in a pan till it is really hot.

Throw in the liver and the marinade into the pan. Remove when the liver is nicely browned.

(you can obviously taste test as you cook)

Cover the salad with the liver and serve.

You will be surprise how much of this you can eat, its really a meal unto itself. If you still cant stand the stuff after this, then you are forever excused for having to eat liver ever again. But somehow I think it might turn out differently....